Fort Halifax was located along the Susquehanna River near the present day borough. It was a temporary stronghold for the Pennsylvania colonial militia from 1756 to 1757, during the French and Indian War. Prior to settlement by Europeans the area was inhabited by North American Indians, presumably Susquehannocks; evidenced by frequent unearthing of tools and arrowheads by local residents and farmers.

As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 875 people, 386 households, and 240 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,578.4 people per square mile (993.6/km²). There were 419 housing units at an average density of 1,234.7 per square mile (475.8/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 98.40% White, 0.46% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.37% of the population.

There were 386 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the borough the population was spread out with 26.1% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $31,597, and the median income for a family was $37,222. Males had a median income of $33,438 versus $24,643 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,443. About 7.7% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under 18 and 13.6% of those over 64.

Residents of Halifax Borough may attend the local, public schools operated by Halifax Area School District which provides taxpayer funded preschool, full day kindergarten through 12th grade. The District's enrollment declined to 1,077 students K-12 in 2013. Halifax Area School District ranked 314th out of 500 public schools for academic achievement of its pupils in 2013. Halifax Area HIgh School is the sole high school operated by the district.

Halifax Borough residents may also apply to attend Infinity Charter School located on 51 Banks St, Harrisburg, the Capital Area School for the Arts located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and any of the Commonwealth's 13 public cyber charter schools at no additional cost to their parents. The Halifax Area School District is required to pay the charter school and cyber charter school tuition for residents who attend these public schools.[4][5] By Commonwealth law, if the District provides transportation for its own students, then the District must provide transportation to any school that lies within 10 miles of its borders. Residents may also seek admission for their school aged child to any other public school district. When accepted for admission, the student's parents are responsible for paying an annual tuition fee set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In 2012, the tuition fees for Halifax Area School District were: Elementary School - $9,225, High School - $11,629.

High school aged students can attend the taxpayer funded Dauphin County Technical School which is funded taxpayer funded by the district through its annual budget.

Capital Area Intermediate Unit #15 provides a wide variety of services to children living in its region which includes Halifax Borough. Early screening, special educations services, speech and hearing therapy and many other services like driver education are available. Services for children during the preschool years are provided without cost to their families when the child is determined to meet eligibility requirements. CAIU15 also operates Capital Area Online Learning Association which is an online learning program operated in association with the local public schools.[6]

Armstrong Valley Christian School is a private school available to the borough's residents. Armstrong Valley Christian School offers an Early Education Center for three and four year olds, 1/2 day kindergarten and full day first through ninth grades. The school is located near Elizabethviile, Pennsylvania.[7]

Halifax residents also have access to Harrisburg Area Community College. People residing in Halifax Borough fund HACC in part through an annual payment made by Halifax Area School District, using local tax dollars.[8] Twenty two local public school districts are required to contribute annually to HACC regardless of whether any residents are attending the college. Full-time students from these districts, who attend HACC, pay $1,674 for 12 credit hours.